Mr. Fluffy on board!by *Littlehorselover

Digital Art / Drawings / Animals

I know I just submitted an earlier training pic .. but man I just couldn`t resist uploading this one too.

And wow, it`s been ages since I spent so much effort for only a training pic.

WARNING - Long story ahead. But I think it`s worth readin, even though it`s kind a quickie. XD
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Weeks went by and Evy was getting more and more worried about "the Mr. Fluffy Problem". She tried everything. She tried hiding it, taking it, riding with it ... nothing worked, whichever plan she tried, it had imperfections, which would have been catastrophic at shows ..
Evy came to the conclusion it was simply impossible to do anything with Baraba if the plushie toy was away .. or even worse .. away in sight. She realized however that Baraba was completely happy and relaxed if they took the plushie along ... So, the plushie had some test rides. Evy tried riding with it in her hand, obviously, that didn`t work. She tried with Baraba simply carrying it on her own, but that ended even worse. XD She tried putting it on the saddle, but the toy kept falling off and securing it with some straps didn`t really work either. She was nearly desperate when she thought of something .... something, that would keep Mr. Fluffy with them and in such manner, that he wouldn`t be in the way.

One day she took some scissors, old leather straps from some old tack, some buckles and a needle. She took one of the older breastplates and got to work. Soon enough the breastplate had some straps on the left side, secured onto it with stitching, strong glue and buckles. "Well, let`s see how this works." She tested out the "Baby on board Breastplate" as she called it, the very next day. Jesse, Luka and Connor actually went to witness the ride, as they were indeed very interested in Evy`s funny-looking contraption. XD

Baraba was brought out of her stall and tacked up, Mr. Fluffy in her mouth all the time. Then Evy took the plushie from its owner, who gave a loud neigh, and placed it into the straps on the breastplate`s side. She strapped it in tight and secure and checked that the whole thing isn`t too heavy and would ruin Baraba`s balance. It wasn`t. The mare was already anxious and nervous by that time, so Evy showed her that her beloved Mr. Fluffy was all there with her and safe. XD The mare calmed down in an instant and the "Baby board Breastplate" along with the toy did keep her interest for quite a long time. xD

"If you show up with THAT at shows, you two will look like complete kids," said Jesse, laughing slightly at the sight, which was, truthfully speaking, quite ridiculous. A tall dark mare with a funny personality, a bouncy plush unicorn strapped at one side and a rider wearing a Slipknot shirt ... even Connor couldn`t stay serious at that one. XD Evy remained silent .. who gives a sh*t about how it looks if it works?! She mounted up, warmed the mare up and went for some test jumps ... Baraba, even though still slightly green and clumsy passed them without problems and Evy was finally relieved. The mare might still be able to perform normally, after all .. well .. maybe not that normally ..

"She can jump, but I swear that unicorn looks funnier with every next jump," said Connor as Evy walked the mare back up to the stables. "Well at least she can be ridden normally now, without death risk due to sliding stops, roll backs and freak outs," snapped Evy back, her face completely unamused. She knew exactly just how pathetic they would look if they appeared at shows and she couldn`t do anything about it. At least not until the mare actually matured. XD But again, for a showing career start, that might be damn late, and she knew she had no choice but to take "Baby board breastplate" and Mr. Fluffy along to the show Baraba would be entering in 2 weeks.

They arrived at the stables which hosted the competition and Evy unloaded Baraba from the trailor. She took the drive surprisingly well and didn`t seem to be bothered about the crowd, many horses and noise. It was a smaller, local competition, with lower jumps, going up to 1.10m, just perfect for Baraba`s first show. They were tacked up and ready quickly, trotting in the warming up arena, Mr. Fluffy bouncing on their left side. XD Evy`s number was called soon enough and she rode in the main arena, pushed Baraba into canter and turned her towards the first jump. She heard some laughter and noise coming from the crowd. "Oh well, they noticed Mr. Fluffy, allright. F*ck my life." She didn`t really have the time to think though, as the jump was approaching fast. Baraba didn`t loose her clumsy-ness yet, but her take-off power made that almost un-noticable. XD They passed the first fence without problems and all the others as well. Baraba even cleared the double. They had a good time around the course, as well as no penalties, and Evy couldn`t be prouder. Baraba was obviously enjoying the whole thing, chewing on the bit, occasionally checking her left shoulder if Mr. Fluffy was still there .. xD and he was.

Evy just finished cooling off the mare and and was almost ready to leave when she heard the speakers call her name. "We would ask the top 5 competitors in the 1.10m class to ride into the main arena for the awarding ceremony." Evy`s name was spoken along with 4 others. She completely forgot about the result. XD "Wooo, looks like we got placed!" she said to Baraba happily, petting the mare`s muzzle. She jumped back in the saddle, and trotted to the arena, where four other equipages were already in line. She tried to look proud and badass even though there was a pinkish plushie hanging off her tack. Some girl next to her, who was clearly under the age of 17 looked at the plushie with a face that could only compare to that of Draco Malfoy, and asked with a loud voice. "Is that a pink plushie on your breastplate? You HAVE to be kidding me. That`s pathetic." She laughed. Evy sent her a *die!* stare along with an almost growled "Shut up you little spoiled brat." The girl gave her another *oh, I`m so superior to you* look before turning away. The results were being announced then and Evy`s heart almost skipped a beat, when the 5th, 4th and 3rd place was announced .. and is wasn`t their name. XD "Go girl, we got in the top 2!" she said quietly to Baraba, petting the mare again, before straightening back up in the saddle and listening to the speakers. "Second place ... Ana Howard and Blackie." ... Now this was the moment Evy would choke on a drink if she had one. "First place, omg!" and yes, the speakers confirmed it, Baraba got first on her first jumping show. "Way to go girl!" Evy said, now loudly and proudly, and pushed the mare into canter, leading the winners` circle around the arena. The girl who laughed at them was right behind her. Evy couldn`t resist and turned her head around to look at the girl before yelling; "STILL WANNA LAUGH AT THE PLUSHIE?! WELL BRING IT ON BEOTCH!! MR. FLUFFY IS ON BOARD!" Nope, she didn`t care anymore. She didn`t give a shit. They won. And everyone who didn`t like Mr. Fluffy could kiss her ass.

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own ref for pose, and own picture for background. ^^